It added that he had been falsely implicated
Raj Kundra has been granted bail after he was arrested for allegedly creating and distributing pornographic films.
The businessman and husband of Bollywood actress, Shilpa Shetty, was ordered to pay Rs. 50,000 (£500) for his release.
It comes after he made a bail request on Saturday, September 18, 2021, amid the ongoing investigation and subsequent charge sheet.
Kundra’s bail request stated that he had been made a “scapegoat” and that there was no evidence to prove that he was actively involved in the porn racket.
It added that he had been falsely implicated and dragged into the case despite the charge sheet claiming that he was the “main facilitator”.
Police believe that along with the other suspects, the businessman had been exploiting young women struggling to make it within the film industry.
It is alleged that his company Viaan Industries was being used as a base for organising the content, which was originally streamed on the mobile app ‘Hotshots’.
However, when this was removed from both the Apple App Store and Google Play Store, they instead switched to one called ‘Bollyfame,’ which they had been using ever since.
Indian police also think that a fake company set up by Kundra and his brother-in-law was registered in the UK to avoid India’s tough cyber-laws.
Authorities are also said to have retrieved WhatsApp messages, emails and pornography evidence.
Four of Kundra’s employees have now turned against him.
The company’s head of IT, Ryan Thorpe, has also been granted bail.
The 1,467-page charge sheet filed before a Mumbai court included a witness statement from his wife who said she was unaware of her husband’s activities.
Shilpa said: “Raj Kundra started Viaan Industries Limited in 2015 and I was one of the directors till 2020 when I resigned due to personal reasons.
“I was too busy with my own work and hence, not aware about what Raj Kundra was up to.“
Kundra was booked under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), Information Technology Act 2000 and Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act 1986.
He was arrested on Monday, July 19, 2021, and spent two months in judicial custody.
Shilpa Shetty is currently judging the reality show Super Dancer 4, alongside choreographer Geeta Kapur and director Anurag Basu.
She had taken some time off shortly after her husband’s arrest.
The couple got married in 2009 after meeting each other through a mutual friend. Shilpa Shetty and Raj Kundra have two children together.
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